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Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Special Time

The boy who made me a mama is growing up. Fast. Now 6 and quickly approaching the end of his kindergarten year, I cherish each tender hug, sweet "I love you mom," and little boy moment from this growing big boy.

I am acutely aware that next year R will embark on full-day school and my one-on-one time with him will be greatly diminished. And while that is just a part of life, and I am okay with it, I created a fun tradition this school year that has become one of my favorite parts of the week.

Each Monday and Wednesday morning, while G is at his Mom's Morning Out program for a couple of hours, R and I have what we have deemed "Special Mommy/R_____ Time." This is when R and I do things that are, quite frankly, just easier to do without a 3 year old helper. (And for the record, G and I have "Special Mommy/G_____ Time" every afternoon when R is at kindergarten)

Yesterday while G was at school, R and I decorated some Easter Cookies. For the first time, I tried a new Royal Icing recipe, and I was thrilled with the results:I am not sure why, but I had never tried making Royal Icing prior to Monday.

But making Royal Icing couldn't be easier (one egg white's worth will give you enough icing for about 3 dozen cookies):

1. Crack an egg white into a bowl*.2. Add a cup or two of powdered sugar.3. Mix well with a hand mixer or stand mixer.4. Add more powdered sugar until you get a thick, but not too thick mixture.5. Oops. You added too much powdered sugar. Now what? Add a few teaspoons of water. Thin it out until you get a the right consistency, (you can alternatively add more sugar if needed).6. Take a plastic bag and place it in a small cup and pull the bag over the sides of the cup:

7. Add the food coloring to a small part of your icing, and fill in the cup with a portion of the icing.8. Close the plastic bag and cut a small (think 1/8" or less) hole in a corner:

9. Give a bag to your sweet pea, and let the creative juices flow:

10. Voila! Cookie Time:

A memorable Special Mommy/R_____ Time to be sure-SPC

*Raw eggs--yeah, I know, you aren't supposed to eat them. You can either get pasteurized eggs, heat the egg whites over a double boiler until they reach 160 degrees or use meringue powder instead of raw eggs.

7 comments:

Camille
said...

I have been using meringue powder for royal icing for the last few years. I used to use raw eggwhite, and then I had a dream where I gave away a bunch of beautifully decorated cookies to my family and friends, and they all called me the next day, sick with salmonella. Granted, it was only a dream, but it was enough to get me to change my tactics, lol!

About Me

It seems like a distant memory, but years ago I relished making involved, gourmet meals. Now my goal is to create healthy meals that appeal both to me and my husband and the palates of my two Sweet Pea boys. Journey with me through my victories and defeats.